Mom’s Taco Soup Recipe!

Lots of family in town yesterday so we went on a mid-day walk. My brother-in-law held Brooke so that I could walk the dog (I like to walk Maggie because she literally pulls me up the hills… now to just train her to do that during a marathon).

Brooke is just one of the gang.

My mom made her delicious taco soup for everybody. I call this Fall in a Bowl Soup. I think she quadrupled the recipe because there were so many of us to feed yesterday.

Fall in a Bowl:

1 lb. ground beef (I am sure you could do ground turkey or no meat at all if you wanted!)

Brooke took a three hour nap yesterday. Three hours. When she woke up she was the energizer bunny so we took her to the park (she was so busy she couldn’t even look up at the camera). I am taking full advantage of the good weather while we have it because it is going to be snowing like crazy before we know it.

You know with ingredients like these you are going to have a delicious dessert (add marshmallows to the picture).

THESE are amazing. They are incredibly sweet and they tasted like a big candy bar. If you like candy corn you should definitely try out the Candy Corn Peanut Mallow Bars.

As I was making these I gave Brooke a marshmallow to eat. She took the marshmallow and threw it on the ground and got back to eating her peas?!?! I still can’t even process the situation.

Do you remember my friend Brittany from Northern California?! She moved back up to Alaska and is visiting Utah for a little while so I get to have her for 24 hours! She got here last night and is sleeping here and this morning we are going on a run together. She brought Brooke a moose and a pumpkin and Brooke got straight to work eating the pumpkin.

I have to show you Brittany’s dog Diego. He is actually the cutest dog I have ever seen

I made Halloween cookies this weekend… just the kind already made and refrigerated though… Still counts to me!
I also bought some candy corn and peanuts…
I also Had chipotle for the first time!!! I really wanted to randomly comment and tell you that because I know it is a huge life event. It was just as amazing as I dreamed!
I will also have to try both recipes. I love candy corn!

How Brooke doesn’t like marshmallows is beyond me. Those are my favorite sugary snack. I love going on walks with my family! This just made me so excited for our thanksgiving gathering. I hope you have a great run today!

I love when family is around! I haven’t made dessert in forever : ( On the cousin front maybe a dozen if that? My dogs name is Sasha and she is a one year old german shepherd – flippin adorable. I am looking forward to starting a mini 5 week training plan to prep for my first post acl surgery race!

Deb

Hi!! I too am a runner and broke my tibia and tore the ACL, MCL, and LCL 3 weeks ago in an accident @ home–I soooo miss running and actually walking right now—do you have any suggestions for any exercise that I could do while sitting and recovering??? I read that you had ACL surgery. any comments will be appreciated. thanks

My biggest tip to you is to get on the stationary bike ASAP. It will really help your range of motion after surgery and bring your quad back to life. I remember the first time I was able to get a full flex out of it, I literally yelled to my roommate COME LOOK AT THIS!!

It get’s better I promise : ) Feel free to email me if you have any questions / need a friend!

The last dessert I made was brownies….in a cupcake pan! Lets just say that is not the ideal way to make brownies. Once they cool off, they won’t come out of the pan! :)
I have 5 cousins. More liek brothers and sisters sometimes. Cousins are fantastic.
My dogs’ name is Nancy. My fiance and I love the show Weeds and it was out 1st Netfliz marathon together so we knew as soon as we saw our puppy we would name her Nancy!
This week I’m most looking forward to getting back in the gym.

Peas over marshmallows? Yeaaaah I don’t get it either. I mean, peas are delicious and all, but the ooey, gooey goodness of mallows? Can’t be beat. That being said, I’d probably take peas over uncooked marshmallows, but one that’s been toasted to perfection? Swoooon. And yes, I just spent far too long talking about mallows. Totally normal.

Shannon

The last desert I made was – I can’t remember. I kind of suck at baking therefore I buy deserts or I eat what others make!
I have 38 first cousins…..haha pretty crazy! My mom’s mom had 16 kids!! and My dad’s mom had 8! So, I have a massive family. They should start a reality show haha
I only have a cat now but when I did have a dog his name was “Cookie”… yes, I really like cookies. hahaha!
I live in Canada so this weekend is our “Thanksgiving Day Weekend!” therefore, I am looking forward to the holiday and family time!

I have to say it again…the view in your pictures is amazing!!!! That is by far the cutest dog I have ever seen!!! I want one! Our dog’s name is Payton. She is part golden lab part golden retriever.
I am looking forward to do a bunch of fun fall things with my kids this week!!!!

I find it hilarious that Brooke threw the marshmellow on the floor, and weird too. She must really like those peas! Last dessert I made was Banana Bread Inspired Ice Cream, Ugh I need to make some more!!! I have 10, 8 of them are in their 30’s haha. My dog is named Dakota, and my old one that is no longer with us, her name is Daisy. We called her Crazy Daisy. I’m most looking forward to my counseling appointment and my boyfriend coming home :)

Hi! My two four-leg guys are Boris(miniature schnauzer) and Lenny (Vizsla).
I’m looking forward to running with my good friend on friday for my last long run before NYC.
May I ask? Does that little guy’s t-shirt say Argentina? Have they been here?!

My dog’s name was Cindy. She was a toy poodle and I named her Cindy after Cindy on the Brady Bunch because they both had curly hair lol. I was 10 at the time, what can I say…That soup looks delish, I may make it this week for my taco soup loving friend.

Oh my goodness, that soup sounds incredible! I’ll definitely have to make it next week. I’m a huge sucker for slow cooker recipes. I really, really like being able to come home to a hot meal after work!

Frances

That’s the taco soup recipe I use, but I leave out the ranch dressing. I’m thinking that would be a good idea to make tonight actually. Haven’t made dessert in awhile, but it’s usually brownies when I do.

Diego doesn’t even look like a real dog! Too cute to not be fake.
I haven’t made dessert in awhile. My mom made it last night because we had dinner at her ouse. It was a fruit and jello thing topped with homemade whipped cream. I can’t eat jello. :-(
I have more first cousins than I can count. Seriously, that will take some thought.
At least forty. I come from a large family.
My dog is Stella. She’s an 11-month old boxer.

Renee

Last desert I made was Turtle Bars….chocolately, carmelly goodness with pecans!
My dog’s name is Oscar…He’s a 1-1/2 yr old German Shepherd. Wouldn’t of necessarily been my name of choice for him at the time – the hubby insisted on it for whatever reason. I have know found it to suit his quirky, fun-loving personality. PS – He would totally love Brooke and her cousins, and Maggie too! He loves kids and new puppy playmates!

Pam

looking forward to heading up North, with my family in tow, for my cousin’s wedding. the boys are going to be “mini groomsmen” for the wedding! speaking of cousins I have 9 cousins. happy Monday my gorgeous, speedy friend!!! have a great run with Brittany! :) xo

I actually had those bars this weekend at our family fall festival! And Noah used to do the same thing… Throw the good food I would give him back at me and want fruits and vegetables. I was like you are definitely not my kid!

Angel food cake for a co-workers birthday.
Are you ready for the cousin question?! ZERO. Both my parents are only kids.
I do not have a dog but my Mom does and his name is Oreo – black and white Border Collie.
It is Thanksgiving this weekend in Canada! So I am excited for turkey and pumpkin pie.

Diego is not real. I’m convinced he is a toy. SO cute. I’ve been on puppy overload this weekend, and every time I see another one, I want to go out and get myself a puppy so badly! I wish I had all the time in the world to take care of it…but since I don’t, I’ll be fawning over other people’s dogs for a little while longer.

Wow, that dog really is the cutest thing ever! Your fall meals look amazing, it looks like you had a great weekend!

I am most looking forward to this weekend (I know, its only Monday…) but its Canadian Thanksgiving this weekend which means that I’m going to cook up a turkey feast and we have a long weekend, and then my birthday is the following week. :)

Barbie

Taco soup is one of my favorite fall/winter meals! It’s so easy and delicious.

Last dessert I made… I made some chocolate chip pumpkin bread a couple days ago if that really counts as “dessert”. I still can’t decide. ;) But it had chocolate chips in it, so I guess it counts. It was gone in two days, no big deal.

Our dogs are Ryan (yellow lab) and Molly (chocolate lab). :) Love them to pieces! And they are amazing with Hunter! If you ever get a dog, get a lab…they’re so great with kids!

Corrinne Wilson

I am looking forward to running the Chicago Marathon on Sunday! It will be my first full marathon and so far I am just excited and not nervous. I might actually be a little bit more excited to meet Skinny Runner this weekend too. Wish you were running it too!

I have a pug named JJ which stands for Jack Johnson like the singer and we have a mixed breed named Boomer since we got him on the 4th of July. Oh and a cat name Mia and a turtle named Squiggy.

ohhh my goodness that dessert look beyond amazing!!!! i cannot wait to get back home in december to try that out (my husband and i are on a 50 city tour around north america doing workshops) and i miiiiiss baking. yum.

no dogs for me (yet) but that one is super duper sweet and stuffed moose animals are the cutest along with babies eating pumpkins.

We used to have 2 boxers. They were our babies. Boy and a girl. The boy was Brinks (like the security system) and the girl Juno (for the Roman goddess of protection of women). I miss them. We hope to get a boxer again in a couple years.

Is Maggie a Doberman? From the angles I could not tell, but she looked thin like a Dobie. We used to have one named Bella. Now we have a dog named Nico. That Diego is so cute that it should be illegal. If my Brooke saw him, she would have to have it.

I am ashamed to say that I really don’t know the last dessert that I made. But I am going to make up for it my baking a pumpkin cake with cream cheese icing later this week!

I can’t wait to try your fall in a bowl recipe! I’ve loved every recipe I’ve tried that you have posted! Our dogs name is Marley – totally separate from the movie, but she has done her best to live up to the name and she does it well!

Sara

Allyssa

My dog’s name is Cooper. That Diego is soooo adorable! Eeek! The last dessert I made was oatmeal crispies cookies. It’s a Pioneer Woman recipe and one of our favorites. I add golden raisins to ours and it really enhances them. I have 17 cousins!

Lora

That dog is so cute!! What kind of dog is he? Our dogs are Roxy and Howard — when I was growing up we had Cocoa, Lucy, and Casey — my husband had Chief and Tinker growing up. I am making brownies this week for a dinner party – yum!! Those bars look great! :)

jrm

My last dog’s name was Brenda. My next one will be named Wanda. I like people names for dogs.

I have 45 cousins. 42 of which are on my Dad’s side of which I am number 42. My paternal grandmother had 9 children, 7 of them had children. The remaining two siblings who didn’t have children — one was a priest and the other a nun. Apparently the first time my Mom met my Dad’s family she brought a cheat sheet with the names of my Dad’s siblings and their respective children so she could keep everyone straight!

The house I just moved into has a little dog named Hudson and a dog that is visiting named Bean. They’re both pretty cute.
I have 40 cousins! and I’m the oldest one in the United States.
Yesterday my roommate and I made butterscotch, chocolate chip, oatmeal cookies. AWE-SOME!!

While Brooke is adorable, I now have to question her tastes a little. Peas over a marshmallow? Does not compute.
I haven’t baked a dessert in a while, but with my birthday, thanksgiving, halloween, and a bake sale that I’m contributing to all in the next couple of weeks, I’m going to be pretty much attached to my kitchen.

april

looks like a fun fall weekend! i love the idea of taco soup. i can’t wait to use my crockpot when the temps get a bit cooler here (it was in the 90s this weekend in so cal – not that i’m complaining! i loved it).

ahhh diego is adorable :) he looks like a fluffy teddy bear. i have 2 dogs – a dachshund named ashton and a lab/hound mix puppy named archie. they’re the best <3

my grandpa on my mom's side was one of 14 kids, so i have a billion cousins on that side of the family. i only have one cousin on my dad's side, though.

Mmmmm, thanks for sharing the soup recipe! I don’t have any first cousins, but I’m so glad that my girls will have lots of cousins growing up. Right now I have 5 nephews and 1 niece and another niece on the way!

Sarah G.

OMG… I am not a dog person at all but that dog is really stinking cute.

This week I am looking forward to actually sleeping in on Saturday (til like 7… yay?) and getting to spend some time with my husband and stepson. I have missed all of the kiddo’s soccer games this season because of my training schedule (wow I feel awful just writing that) and I will finally get to go to one because it’s a rest week. Then we are all going to a fall festival afterwards. :) I have a race on Sunday – a 5-miler – and I’m hoping the speed gods are with me so I can place in my AG… we’ll see!

Marissa

Dessert would be pizookies :) It’s like pizza cookies.
I have several cousins, but I only see about 3 of them frequently. My kiddos get to see their 4 cousins pretty regularly.
My dog’s names are Sofie and Zipper (It used to be Zippe and Button) and our cat is named Dori. The kids named her.
I am most looking forward to homecoming being over with this Friday! And my last long run before 3 weekends of races.

eliza

http://www.chefjessicabright.com/campfire-cones.html We made these this weekend camping and they were unreal!
We just used chopped strawberries, bananas, choc. chips and mini marshmallows. Put them in a waffle cone and wrap in tin foil. Then you throw in fire (or oven)

Stephanie

Hi All! I have a doggie that looks just like this :) Her name is Ruby and she is a CAVAPOO!!! It’s a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel mixed with a Poodle. Literally the best combo ever. She’s smart and sassy like a Poodle but has the love, warmth, sensitivity, and heart of the Cavalier. BEST BREED EVER!

I didn’t exactly “make” this dessert, but I had some peanut butter Pop Tarts yesterday. Not too shabby, but I’m a PB addict… no, I’m not. I can give it up any time I want. ;) Candy corn hasn’t made it’s debut into my life yet this fall, so I might have to make those bars.

Thanks for the recipes….they both look amazing and I will be trying them for sure!

Our dog is named Rudy but called ~ Poopy, Snoopy, Toobooty, and just about any thing else that some what rhymes with Rudy~ no surprise if he doesn’t always come when called….he probably doesn’t know what name to answer to. ha!

Despite my parents having six siblings between the two of them, I only have three cousins (and they are either way younger or way older than me). Last dessert I made were pumpkin bars from a Trader Joe’s box!

Katia

Last dessert I made was banana bread.. I kind of failed at it because I thought I ran out of sugar and used honey instead.. I’ll save you from ever doing that .. it’s not the best texture. Luckily my husband will eat almost anything, and he liked it.

My doggy’s name is Sparky.. I adopted him and felt like he may have gone through enough, so I couldn’t change his name, too!

So far this week I’m most looking forward to finishing the first season of Breaking Bad.. yes this is the excitement of my life right now, but we started watching it and I’m hooked.

And no worries, I’m trying the candy corn thing.. I’ve already printed out the recipe here at work. Clearly being productive.

Jackie

1. Chocolate Chip Cookies
2. 30. My dad came from a big family. That is why I’m an only.
3. My GSP is Rosemary. She had two beagle sisters–Basil and Thyme. ‘Cuz you can do that to your dogs.
4. Nothing. Appears that it will be a boring week in the trenches. Hopefully it will be sunny and cool so that I can get in some nice runs. Yesterday’s run in the wind and drizzle was miserable!

Dawnie

I am now about to make rasberry eton mess, with yoghurt not cream
My dog is called Alfie Bear
6 cousins
Ooh and I ran my first marathon on Sunday. I knew I wouldn’t make my A goal of sub 4 as my body hasn’t held out well, so tried for 4.15 but I persevered in the heat and got my B goal sub 4.30 with 4.29.21! So happy with that as it was really really hard! Don’t know how you go so fast! I got a prize of a shin splint, my left shin looks bruised ;-( doing the RICE but still happy I finished that Mara :-D

amy

Now i want taco soup. Ive never seen it with ranch seasoning. I will have to try that.
I cant believe those sugary bars you made…no wait I can. The last thing I made was chocolate chip cookies. Every sunday is called cookie sunday at our house. Its a little tradition I started with my kids to make sunday even sweeter. My 4 kids (ages 3-8) take turns helping me with the recipe. They really look forward to it. (So do I)
I did 8 minute arms In your honor this morning after jillian michaels kicked my bed in 30 day shred. (If u ever do that one do t believe her when she says its 60 mins, its more like 90 mins with warm up and cool down but its a good one.) My running day is tomorrow.
I love that you post 2x a day. Im kinda addicted, thanks!

I had peanut butter pie last night! I have a lot of cousins. 12 I think?! Plus many many more 2nd and 3rd cousins! I don’t have a dog but my cats names are: Kiki, Cleo, Malcolm, Jack, and … Poop. That’s his name :)

Anything with candy corn (the other food group) is a must try in my book! This dog is so adorable! Looks like stuffed doggie doll! I have two beauties: Rummer (girl) and Jack (boy); they are my babies.

What am I looking forward to this week? Having the stitched in my foot removed! :D

Tedi

Our dogs names are Hurley (after Hurley from lost) and Pepper (after Pepper Potts from Iron man) if you have never met my husband… He’s BIG into iron man. Like REALLY big. Has a good, homemade costume of Iron Man that he wears. :) so he was happy to name our dog pepper. :)

Awwww that dog really is the cutest dog EVER!!!! Ahhhh what breed is he?! I have been wanting to make chili for a few days now, and now seeing your pictures, it’s kind of pushed me over the edge. Chili it is! :)

I haven’t made a dessert in forever! I’m the queen of buying store-bought! Our dogs’ names are Reyna and Nelli. We used to have a Daisy, too! I know it’s cliche, but I’m looking forward to Friday! My weekends just go by too fast!

Emilie

Te last desert I made was brownies. My dogs are Dillon and Gus, both Pembroke welsh corgis and about the cutest dogs ever :) I have a bunch of cousins but most live very far from us, I am totally looking forward to the weekend for other reason than I can sleep in and not to to work lol.

I love that Brooke would rather eat peas than marshmallows, she is a healthy girl :) and super cute to boot. Oh and I love how much she loves dogs and how much you do too… They really make life that much more fun…

I have the four most adorable furbabies ever:
Paisley Claire
Kinley Paris
Bentley Eva
Scotty

Yes, they all have middle names except for Scotty. He is the only boy, and the only one we got as an adult. We named all the girls as puppies but couldn’t come up with a middle name for him. We also only call them by both names when they get in trouble, and he literally never gets in trouble, so it’s a non-issue.

Erika

Ahh it’s been a while since I’ve made any type of dessert. Lately my favorite dessert has been Yogurtland’s New York Cheesecake. So delicious! I do want to make your s’mores bars recipe so that may be the next thing I make.

I have so many cousins I can’t even name them all. There are some I’ve never even met.

My dog’s name is Roco. He is a very energetic Pomeranian and I love him to pieces.

This week I’m looking forward to getting more miles in and hopefully finishing season 3 of The Walking Dead.